The regime tested a ballistic missile with a cluster warhead capable of 'reducing targets to ashes'

North Korea announced on Thursday a successful test of a tactical ballistic missile armed with a high-power cluster warhead. The KCNA news agency emphasizes that the tests were carried out in a situation of growing tensions in relations with South Korea.

The aim of the tests was a detailed assessment of the combat use and destructive power of cluster munitions carried by rockets. According to KCNA, the tests confirmed that the new weapon “can reduce any target within an area of ​​6.5-7 hectares to ashes using the highest density force.”

The series of tests lasted from Monday to Wednesday and also included anti-aircraft systems, carbon fiber bombs and electromagnetic weapons. KCNA described them as “regular activities aimed at the constant development and modernization of weapon systems.”

According to the South Korean military, the KN-23 family of short-range missiles, an equivalent of the Russian Iskander missiles, flew from 240 to 700 km.

The tests coincide with persistently high tensions on the Korean Peninsula. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un continues to expand his nuclear arsenal, categorically rejecting diplomacy. North Korea's deputy foreign minister, Jang Kum Chol, stated that South Korea will remain “the most hostile country” and described the attempts by the authorities in Seoul to resume talks as a completely naive and baseless “pipe dream.”

In order to break diplomatic isolation and strengthen its position in the region, the regime in Pyongyang is also strengthening relations with Russia and China. North Korean state media announced that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will arrive on Thursday for a two-day visit to the country.

Krzysztof Pawliszak (PAP)

krp/ san/